The way Indians drive will finally witness a change. With a nod of the Union Cabinet, the Motor Vehicles Bill will soon see daylight. The Amendment, although was announced in 2016, wasn’t approved by the Rajya Sabha as it lapsed at the end of the 16th Lok Sabha. On Monday, 24th June, the Cabinet approved the updated Motor Vehicles Bill that contains provisions to make the Indian roads safer.
As per the reports, the content of the Amendment will remain the same as that of Motor Vehicle Bill 1988, with aadhar card likely to become a mandate to obtain licence & registration certificate. The bill, in addition to added pollution-curbing measures, also intends to bring automated fitness testing for transport vehicles. The Amendment seeks:
-
New rules for issuing driving licence : In addition to making aadhaar card mandatory for vehicle registration, the bill reduced the validity of the driving licence from 20 years to 10 years. Individuals renewing licence between the age group of 50 to 55 years will have validity only till the age of 60 years. And those renewing after 55, will have validity only for 5 years. The Amendment also chucks the third party insurance payout limit.
-
Higher penalties : Under the modified Amendment, the violation fines have been increased by a substantial amount, that is, almost 10 times on specific offences. For instance, fine for speeding will increase to ₹ 5000 from the current ₹ 500 penalty. Similarly, the fine for drinking and driving will be increased to ₹10,000 from ₹ 2000, whereas the fine for not wearing a helmet or seat belt has been increased from ₹ 100 to ₹ 1000. In addition to these violations not giving way to emergency services like an ambulance will have to pay a fine of ₹ 10,000, while aggregators violating terms will attract ₹ 5000 fine.
-
Recall for defective vehicles : This Bill mandates a voluntary recall by the manufacturer in case of a substandard or factory defect vehicles being sold. Manufacturers must also reimburse buyers with the complete price of the vehicle in case of a defective vehicle sold, whereas the government can levy a fine of up to ₹ 500 crores.
-
Recognition to app-based services : As per the updated Motor Vehicles Amendment, app-based cab service aggregators like Uber, Ola etc. will receive recognition and will also be scrutinised and fined if found violating the traffic regulations. The fines are a hefty sum under the new Bill.
In addition to these proposals, the Union Cabinet will also frame a National transportation policy to pay attention to issues including the framework of the transport system and road permits schemes. The Cabinet has also approved Amendments to Consumer Protection Bill, aiming to promote and protect consumer rights via setting up a Central consumer protection authority.
The Motor Vehicles Bill is scheduled to be presented in the Parliament in the monsoon session. Once approved, the new fines and regulations will be updated, notified and enforced on the roads.